Epic's current enrollment surpasses 32,000 students
Already the third largest school system in Oklahoma, Epic Charter Schools has enrolled 32,202 students and could add to its massive growth next year, a cofounder of the school said.
That exceeds the enrollment of Edmond Public Schools, the third largest traditional district in the state with 25,600 students, and approaches Tulsa Public Schools, which has 35,675 students, not counting Tulsa charter schools.
Founded in 2011, Epic has rapidly attracted students — and scrutiny — to its statewide online learning program and to Epic Blended Learning Centers, which combine physical learning spaces with online schoolwork.
“We are seeing our growth rate level off a little bit,” Epic co- founder Ben Harris said on Thursday. “Partly because of the size we are, the growth rate is just mathematically lower. Secondly, there's going to be a limit to the students that want to go to school our way and with us.”
Epic's virtual charter school system, which is the largest of its kind in Oklahoma, could grow by another 15% to 20% next year, but it isn't expected to see major enrollment gains like the past, Harris said in an annual report to the Rose State College Board of Regents.
Epic Blended is authorized to operate through Rose State.
The statewide virtual learning platform, called Epic One-on-One, is authorized through the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board.
Enrollment in the entire virtual school system has increased by 51% since Oct. 1, 2018. Epic is the largest of Oklahoma's five public virtual schools and is free to any student.
The online system's growth is even more staggering in comparison to school districts of similar size, which have grown moderately or lost students.
Oklahoma City Public Schools, the largest district in the state, has lost more than 5,000 students in the past five years.
A similar number of students have left Tulsa Public Schools in the past decade, according to a Tulsa World report. Edmond schools have added 1,700 students over the past five years.
In the 2014- 15 school year, Epic had 4,370 students enrolled in its online learning system. Its blended centers did not yet exist.
"We have grown, frankly, way beyond our wildest expectations for the school," Harris said. "We really didn't have any idea that this many families would find value in our model."
Epic's state funding skyrocketed along with its enrollment. Epic One- onOne received $96.2 million in state funds this school year while Epic Blended netted $60.4 million.
State investigators alleged Epic embezzled millions in state funds by illegally inflating student enrollment counts, according to court documents the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation filed last year. OSBI agents reportedly found dozens of “ghost students” who were counted as enrollees even though they received little to no instruction from Epic.
Investigators reported Harris and Epic co-founder David Chaney personally pocketed $ 10 million from 2013 to 2018.
Epic and its co- founders have denied any wrongdoing.
The investigation is still ongoing, and no charges have been filed.
Harris reinforced that stance while speaking with the Rose State regents on Thursday.
“In the last three years, we have endured over 40 audits and reviews by the various authorizers and regulatory authorities that have the ability to do that,” he said. “All of those reviews have been clean.”
An investigative audit of Epic's finances is still underway by the Oklahoma State Auditor and Inspector. It is possible the audit could be completed this summer.
Harris said Epic is confident “there's not going to be any criminal wrongdoing found” in the state audit.
However, Harris and Chaney's private management company that operates the virtual school has reportedly resisted subpoenas to turn over financial records to state auditors.
The state auditor's office and Attorney General Mike Hunter took Epic Youth Services to court in March to compel documents the company had “refused to turn over for several months.”
Attorneys for Epic Youth Services contend the company does not have to comply with subpoenas because it is a private business.